


avoidance

by shadowdance



Category: Pocket Monsters: Sun & Moon | Pokemon Sun & Moon Versions
Genre: Canon Compliant, F/F, Mild Spoilers, Post-Game(s)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-16
Updated: 2017-02-16
Packaged: 2018-09-24 14:15:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,026
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9754184
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shadowdance/pseuds/shadowdance
Summary: In which Mina has trouble coming up with a trial and Hapu struggles with her kahuna duties and it's definitely not fun.





	

**Author's Note:**

> i'm not that invested in many sumo ships and this was a warmup that escalated but?? their ending picture is rlly cute i like the idea of them interacting

The news of Alola’s first champion goes out fast, traveling from island to island. Its impact is like the force of a tidal wave—terrifying and powerful.

The moment Mina finds out, she goes to the top of Vast Poni Canyon and sits dangerously close at the edge, feet dangling in midair. All she does is sketch furiously, her fingers tracing over the page as she tries to push away the anxious feeling in her chest.

Alola has a champion now. Alola is shaping up like an _actual pokémon league_ and it’s—a little frightening. Mina is used to change, of course; Poni Island got the biggest change of all, when Hapu’s grandfather passed away and Hapu—strong, brave, Hapu—broke down in tears at Mina’s doorstep. Poni Island was left without a kahuna, at least until recently, and _that_ was a big change itself. So no, Mina isn’t afraid of change.

What _does_ frighten her is the fact Alola has a champion and she is still sitting here, not having a goddamn _trial_ ready for any challenger. As usual, Poni Island is being left in the dust while the rest of Alola moves forward.

Mina sighs. She props her head on top of her sketchbook and waits for the sun to fall and the moon to show its face, knowing that when night comes this time, it’ll be different.

 

+

 

Hapu finds her.

“Mina, have you been up here this whole time?” she sounds slightly incredulous, but not so much surprised. Mina smiles at her, kicking her legs in the air.

“I just wanted to wait for the sunset, c’mon…”

Hapu shakes her head, and then plops down next to her. Her mudsdale nuzzles her shoulder, and Hapu giggles. For a second Mina contemplates sketching this, but she already has a few sketches of Hapu and her mudsdale and another one might be _too_ much.

“Did you hear about the champion?” Hapu asks, shifting closer to Mina, and Mina pauses, her pencil caught between two fingers.

“Mhmm.” She settles on a neutral response, but Hapu narrows her eyes, seeing right through it.

“You don’t like it.”

Mina shakes her head slowly. “Not that. I just didn’t expect _Alola_ to have a champion…does that make sense? And it means more responsibility or something…more kids are going to go through the island trial now, right? Because they all want to be champion.”

Hapu frowns. “You _are_ a kid, Mina.”

Of course Hapu would pick this up out of her long speech, although she has a point. But Mina is sixteen and Hapu just turned fifteen and that’s considered _old_ by most trial-goers, so Mina waves it off. “Not the point. Anyways…now I _really_ gotta make a trial.”

Hapu remains quiet. They both know she has to do that at some point, but now it’s more urgent. And Mina _should’ve_ been able to do it when Hapu’s grandfather first appointed her, but Mina was in the middle of a creative slump. Technically, she still is, and that’s the excuse she’s been giving herself for not coming up with any ideas. It’s a flimsy excuse, but Mina allows herself to believe it.

“You’ll be fine,” Hapu says finally—reassuringly. She sounds much older than she is, and for some reason it makes a lump rise in Mina’s throat. “You’re really creative, Mina. You’ll definitely come up with something soon.”

Mina tilts her chin up. “I don’t know…none of my art has been good lately…”

Hapu blinks, and then a glare takes over her pretty features. “That’s a load of mudsdale crap. For example—that piece you’re doing right now looks really good. Mind if I ask for it?”

Hapu already has a number of Mina’s drawings. Most of them look the same, at least to Mina, but Hapu insists they all look unique to her and she loves them all. Mina doesn't complain, though; at least  _someone_ likes her work, and she's very glad that person is Hapu, because Hapu is sort of hard to impress.

“Well, I wasn’t going to do much with it, so here.” Mina tears it out and hands it to Hapu. “It’s not the best, though…”

But Hapu takes it with a smile like the sun’s rays.

 

+

 

Hapu makes her go home and sleep, because, as she claims, “You can’t put your energy in a battle if you’re only half-awake.” Mina complies, and when she wakes up she forces herself to sit down and come up with a trial. Two hours in and all she’s done is crumple ten sheets of paper full of terrible doodles.

“This is so _hard_ ,” Mina groans, her head hitting her desk. Granbull opens his eyes at the sound and cocks his head, and she lifts her head up, shifting her gaze towards her pokémon. “Ignore me, Granbull. You don’t have to worry about it.”

Granbull, however, lumbers over to her and puts his head in her lap. A minute later, he starts drooling, and Mina smiles, petting the top of his head. “Thanks for the comfort, buddy,” she says, propping her free hand on her chin. “Unfortunately, though, I gotta get this done.”

Granbull’s eyes turn curious, and Mina shakes her head. “I’m a trial captain, remember?” She tickles his ears, and Granbull closes his eyes. “Except I really don’t _have_ a trial…which is why I need to work on that.”

She turns back to the dreaded white paper and frowns. Granbull keeps his head on her lap as her pencil traces over the paper, slowly but surely. After a moment, Mina pulls it out, reading all of them over. Collecting flowers, battling all the trainers in the area…none of them seem very _good_ to her, but it’s a start, right?

She leans down to Granbull. “Hmm…what do you think of this stuff, Granbull?”

Granbull takes a look at her list of ideas, as if sizing them up. Then he opens his jaws and takes a large bite out of it, the paper ripping through his teeth. Mina sighs and crumples up the remains.

“Got it. It’s pretty bad. Thanks, Granbull.”

Granbull lays his head back on Mina’s lap and growls affectionately.

 

+

 

Sitting in her house is too stifling. Mina stands up and storms out of her house without looking back, feeling angry and stressed and slightly panicked. Being cooped up in a house does not do her well; Hapu often says Mina is like her mudsdale, where neither of them can be held down for long. It's Hapu who makes Mina feel more relaxed, so she grabs her sketchbook and Granbull before heading out.

Hapu is not home, however, when Mina goes to her grandmother’s house; Hapu’s grandmother just gives her a careful look before saying, “She’s at the Ruins of Hope.” Then she turns away, and Mina knows better to press the subject.

She _hates_ walking to the ruins; pebbles always sneak in her shoes when she walks and the ocean slapping against the rocks annoys her, but she's so desperate she goes there anyways. And of course Hapu is surveying the shrine, her fingers running over old rocks. When she whirls around, her eyes widen in surprise, and her mudsdale nickers softly.

“Hey Mina,” she says, trying to conceal her shock, and immediately Mina feels bad for disrupting this, feeling selfish and guilty. “What’s going on?”

Mina’s words dry up in her throat. “Nothing,” she chokes out, and Hapu raises an eyebrow.

“C’mon, you aren’t fooling me. How’d you know I was here, anyways? Nobody else cares so much to track me down, except maybe Grandma.”

Mina feels her heart twist at those words. But that’s the price of being a kahuna or a trial captain, right? Loneliness is bound to hit, because all you do is work and battle other kids; there is no time for socializing, no time to do anything else but _battle_. It’s a miracle Hapu and Mina have become friends, really. “I’m, uh…having trouble.”

Hapu cocks her head to the side. “Yeah?” When Mina affirms this, she glances at her mudsdale, and then nods. “Let’s talk outside, then. I don’t think Tapu Fini will want to hear us discuss _trial_ problems.” She throws a tired look towards the ruins before walking out, and Mina follows her.

They sit at the edge of the Poni Breaker Coast, and Mina finally speaks. “I’ve been trying to come up with a trial, but nothing’s coming out.”

Hapu puts her hand underneath her chin, swinging her short legs. “Well, what have you come up with?”  
  
Mina takes out her sketchbook but doesn’t open it, suddenly feeling embarrassed. “Nothing.”

“Mina.” Hapu’s voice sharpens with disbelief. “You would _not_ come track me down and then shrivel up like a pansy if you didn’t have any ideas. I’m not going to judge. Don’t you know me?”

Mina looks at her and suddenly notices dark bags under her eyes. She chooses not to ask Hapu about this. “I suggested to let the trainer battle everyone in the Gauntlet before challenging me, but Granbull didn’t really like that idea, he tore up the paper-”

“Mina, I thought we agreed you won’t rely on your pokémon—especially _Granbull_ —anymore.” Hapu shakes her head, and Mina notices stray hairs from Hapu’s usual neat braids. And when Hapu rubs her eyes, she lets out a quiet but exhausted sigh that doesn’t go unheard.

“Hapu, you okay? You look sorta…worn down.”

Hapu’s hands fly to her face self-consciously. “What? I’m fine. We’re talking about _you_.”

“Yeah…but you look super tired. Are your kahuna duties wearing you down…?”

“No!” Hapu jumps to her feet, the determination lighting in her eyes. “I’m perfectly fine. I just…haven’t slept. But I’m okay.”

Mina narrows her eyes. “You always tell _me_ to sleep when I stay up late.”

“It’s different.” Hapu paces back and forth, something she only does when she’s nervous. She’s wringing her hands too, so Mina stands up, towering over her in an attempt to get her to stop. But Hapu doesn’t back down, doesn’t stop pacing. “I’m _fine_. Can we just talk about your trial ideas?”

“There are none,” Mina says simply. “I can’t think of anything.”

Hapu rolls her eyes. Her shoulders are slumped, Mina notices, and her whole demeanor just screams exhaustion. “Mina, you’re an artist. Think about the other trial captains. And not _just_ that Ilima boy,” she adds, irritation lacing in her tone. “I know you admire him and all, but think of other captains. Mallow, Kiawe, Sophocles…they designed their trials in stuff they’re interested in. Why don’t you do that?”

Mina watches as Hapu tugs on Mudsdale’s reins. She closes her eyes for a moment, but then sticks a soft smile on her face. “You’ll do fine, Mina,” she assures her. “And I want you to come find me when you come up with a trial, okay?”

Mina cracks a small smile. “I was going to anyways.”

 

+

 

Nothing is working.

Mina grinds her teeth in frustration and throws her sketchbook on the dirt. She’s at the top of Poni Canyon again, because she gets all her best ideas there, but all her ideas are just _so fucking stupid_ compared to other trials that she contemplates throwing her sketchbook down the canyon.

She frowns and calls Granbull out of his poké ball. “Granbull, all my ideas _suck_.”

Granbull peeks down the canyon ledge and gulps, cowering behind her legs. Mina chuckles in spite of herself. “Pretty high, right? I’m surprised you haven’t gotten used to it.”

She swings her legs and sighs heavily, the sound clouding around them. “Okay, let’s think…what could have other trial captains done? That Kiawe kid, doesn’t he have some dances…? And someone points out what’s different each time…” she bites her bottom lip so hard it might bleed.

“What could my totem pokémon be, anyways? A dugtrio? But I specialize in fairy pokémon. They’re fun to draw, too…” she muses to herself, and then, like a thunderbolt, inspiration strikes her.

The pencil practically skims across the page as she sketches, eager to get her ideas down, and when Granbull glances curiously at the paper she doesn’t even nudge him away. It doesn’t take her that long, and even though the finishing piece is rather sloppy and sketchy, Mina doesn’t care.

Then she hesitates, and tentatively holds it in front of Granbull. “Look, it doesn’t matter, I know…but what do you think?”

Granbull looks at it, and then at his owner. A beat passes, and then he yawns and curls up. Mina smiles in relief.

“Thanks, Granbull,” she murmurs, and calls him back in her poké ball.

 

+

 

Finding Hapu isn’t hard this time. Mina’s instinct leads her to Hapu’s house, where the new kahuna is crouched in front of her miltank. When Mina bursts through the door—no knocking, no hello—Hapu almost trips over in shock.

“Mina, what-”

“I got it,” Mina says breathlessly. “I figured out what my trial will be, Hapu! I got it!”

Hapu blinks slowly, absorbing this. In a way, their roles are reversed; it’s usually Mina trying to comprehend whatever Hapu is saying. “…Oh,” she says slowly at first, and for a moment Mina feels her excitement ebb away. Then a smile spreads across Hapu’s face, one of pure joy. “Good job, Mina! I knew you could do it. What is it?”

Mina unrolls her sketch; it’s slightly crumpled now and still very sloppy, but Hapu seems to be able to interpret it. She squints at it, and then smiles again. It’s a very worn smile, but Mina beams back at her.

“It’s going to be a _lot_ of work,” she finds herself explaining hastily. “I’m going to have to use a lot of pokémon, but…it’d almost be like picking a starter pokémon. There'll be paintings I'll hold up, and then they'd choose the pokémon that looks like it. Probably the last one will have to the trial pokémon…oh, I _need_ a trial pokémon…”

“You could always use a granbull,” Hapu teases, and there’s a glimmer of mischief in her eyes when Mina looks up. Almost immediately, though, the look darkens, and she sighs despondently. “Look, I have to head back out—there are some trial-goers or whatever. But it looks like a good idea. I’d love to help if I had…” her voice trails off, and Mina knows the missing word is _time_. She'd love to help if she didn't have to face the wrath of new, eager challengers, if she didn't have to stop and check on Tapu Fini's ruins.

So Hapu simply leaves it at, "I'd love to help, Mina." Then she glides out of the house— _glides_ , which isn’t something Mina usually associates her with, but maybe she’s trying to be more regal, to fit the posture of someone wielding power. It doesn’t really fit her, Mina decides, but she’s always kept her opinions to herself because they’re not important.

So she closes her mouth and returns home, the paper clutched so tightly in her hands it bends and wrinkles.

 

+

 

Mina doesn’t hear from Hapu for one, two, three, four days. It’s not lonely—Mina thrives when she’s alone, her best ideas come then—but she does miss Hapu. It used to be annoying whenever Hapu showed up unannounced, her mudsdale barely squeezing on the ship; but Mina became accustomed to it and Hapu's absence is louder than her first arrivals.

On the fifth day, though, Hapu barges in her house like old times—except there’s some sort of fury in her eyes and she looks stressed. Her voice doesn’t _sound_ like her either, all sharp and terse. “Battle me, Mina.”

Mina blinks. “…What?”

“Battle me,” Hapu repeats. “You’re strong. Meet me in front of the Canyon.”

There has to be some explanation for this, but Mina receives none. Still, she reaches for her poké balls and heads out to the canyon, where Hapu sits under a tree. Her mudsdale looks extremely bored, but Hapu’s eyes brighten when she sees Mina. “Ready?” she asks, and Mina sighs and pulls out her poké balls.

Hapu is a tough competitor; Mina knows this from watching her battle countless trainers. But Mina is strong, and it works to her advantage; most people write her off as lazy. And okay, she _is_ , but both Hapu and Mina know she’s not lazy when it comes to battles. It shows, when Granbull takes out three of Hapu’s pokémon before Hapu’s mudsdale one-shots him, and even then the rest of Mina’s pokémon take it down. Not easily, but it _happens,_ and Mina emerges victorious.

The moment after Hapu recalls her mudsdale, she sinks to her knees and covers her face with her hands.

Mina frowns, and then she crosses over to her friend. Hapu is silent, so she’s certainly not crying; when Mina places her hands on her shoulders, though, she feels how tight her friend is. Automatically, her hands start pressing deep into Hapu’s shoulders.

“I think you should take a break,” she says quietly; what else is she supposed to say? Hapu shakes her head, and slowly removes her hands from her face.

“My grandfather was impossible to defeat,” she confesses. “I never beat him in a battle..but I have to be as strong as him. But most people I’ve been battling beat me.”

“Well,” Mina says, shrugging, “nobody can become Champion if they keep losing to you. You’re supposed to be _challenging_ , not _unbeatable_.”

Hapu bites her lip and looks down. Her poké balls are caked with dust, but they still gleam under the sun. Mina thinks it would make a good picture.

“Your pokémon are tired, and you’re tired. Take a _break_ , Hapu.” Mina pauses. “I’m going up to the canyon to doodle for a bit. Wanna come?” She extends her hand out as an open invitation, and Hapu stares at it for a second.

Then she smiles, her eyes crinkling and her posture relaxed and it’s _quite_ a pretty picture. “Okay,” she says, and then takes Mina’s hand and doesn’t let go.

**Author's Note:**

> i knoooow its the snubull on the boat in Poni Island that eats mina's stuff, not her own granbull, but by the time i realized that i was like halfway through so just rolled w it  
> i edited it while i was super tired, so if you noticed a mistake just let me know!


End file.
